


Legacy

by whiteglasspane



Category: Iron Man (Movies), Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017), The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Gen, Hurt Peter Parker, Hurt/Comfort, Post-Spider-Man: Homecoming, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Protective Tony Stark, Tony Stark Acting as Peter Parker's Parental Figure, Tony Stark Has A Heart
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-03-10
Updated: 2019-03-11
Packaged: 2019-11-14 18:30:09
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 10,918
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18057770
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/whiteglasspane/pseuds/whiteglasspane
Summary: Tony rescues Peter after a near death experience and vows to train the young hero weekly.





	1. Chapter One: Introduction

**Author's Note:**

> Welcome to my first fanfiction in forever! Tony and Peter stole my heart in Homecoming and Civil War, so I chose to write about their relationship a little while after Peter turns down being an Avenger to Tony in Homecoming. I tried to stay within canon for the most part, except where Bruce is still staying in the Avenger's compound. That's me just stepping out of canon a little bit. I wanted to write out how Peter gets to train weekly with Tony and other Avengers as well as other established fandom ideas that haven't been quite fleshed out yet. 
> 
> My goal is to write how Tony's and Peter's mentor/mentee relationship grows more and is ultimately defined as a father/son relationship. Hope you enjoy!

Spiderman had been dealing with these guys for too long now.

 

They were in an abandoned factory of some kind; it was night—probably after midnight. The criminals in question had been dealing in hard drugs and were meeting up in this warehouse for a deal to go down. Peter didn’t like these guys because not only did their drugs killed many innocent lives through overdose, but they often killed or kidnapped civilians who got in their way. Finally, Peter found out where these assholes hung out and could shut them down for good.

Peter observes the drug gang from above through an open window, planning his next move. “Okay, Karen what am I looking at here?” he peers through his mask with the infrared on. 

“There are five unarmed and three armed,” the A.I. responds dutifully. “I recommend taking the armed ones out quickly first.” 

To Peter’s luck, the three gunmen were standing relatively close to each other, with the other five gathering the load they were picking up. He figured he could jump down then use a web grenade, to cause a distraction.  He would then web two of the three into each other, knocking both of them out while simultaneously colliding into the third gunman in the center. He would web them up first, ensuring their guns were secured to the ground unable to be used. The other five he would just web up. It sounds like a foolproof plan. 

Peter jumps down through the opening from the roof without a sound. “Sorry to crash the party guys!” He throws down a web grenade in the center of the warehouse. The rest of the plan works exactly as he’d hoped. He was finishing webbing up the last of the drug traffickers when something black and heavy went over his head, and felt something tight wrappingaround his neck. “Hey! Wha-?” he started, his Spidey-sense going crazy. He throws his elbow back into the stomach of whoever was behind him, and pulls at what he believes is a cable around his neck. It’s too tight, and he can’t find a knot. He feels his skin burn and his tongue swell. “Ack!” Peter gags loudly, fiercely attempting to move air into his lungs.

“You are suffocating, Peter,” Karen states urgently. “Alerting Mr. Stark.” 

“W-wha.t?…n-no…” Peter feels guilty immediately, but he has more pressing matters on his hands. _I must have missed someone,_ Peter thinks regretfully. He blindly works his fingers in-between the cords, allowing some space between his neck. _Almost…_ he thinks to himself with relief. His skin tingles again as he feels something collide with his chin and is sent flying backward. Peter’s head begins to spin, his lack of sight adding to the disorientation. 

Just as he felt that the cable was loosening, someone tightened it, cruelly, pushing against his back, “This is really how Spiderman goes down? Easier than we thought.” 

Peter hears a voice as his lungs strain for air. Icy fear rose in his chest as his vision starts to blur. “Ge-get off….” Peter can barely whisper. His heart rate was racing wildly. He feels his arms go weak as he desperately claws at the top of the hood, pulling weakly as the material slips through his fingers over and over. His fingers go numb next. 

Another voice cuts the air faintly, “I don’t think we’ll have any more problems with him. C’mon let’s go.” Peter clutches at his neck, he feels his body collapse to the solid ground with a soft thud. Peter doesn’t know how much time he had. He has so much more left for his life. Aunt May, Ned, MJ…

Those were his last thoughts as his mind went black.

 

——————————————————————————————————————————

 

Tony is working in his lab at the Avenger’s facility when FRIDAY alerts to him to a distress call.

“Sir, Peter Parker’s AI is sending an emergency signal.” She states. Tony’s face darkens as he removed his safety goggles and tosses them aside. “Location, FRIDAY, now.” His tone was serious but coated with urgency. 

“On it,” She replies.

_What mess was Peter into this time?_ Tony activates his suit quickly, and within seconds he was Ironman and rockets out the nearest opening. He hates feeling worried. He knows Karen wouldn't send a distress signal unless Peter was in mortal danger. He grit his teeth as he flew through the night sky. “FRIDAY, about that location?” he asks impatiently. FRIDAY complies, pulling up a map with coordinates of Peter’s signal on Tony’s screen through his mask. “Good, he’s close.”

 

——————————————————————————————————————————

 

Tony arrives over an abandoned warehouse. He scans cautiously for any other life forms in the area. He noticed other men unconscious around the building, but he was otherwise clear to go in. He scans for vitals next, and lands on one lone figure, lying motionless in the center of the building. He blasts towards the figure, knowing it belongs to Peter and that he wasn’t breathing. “How long has he been out?” Tony asks, his voice strained. 

“About one minute,” FRIDAY responds quickly. 

Landing on the ground, he breaks out of his Ironman suit and sees what caused Peter’s distress signal: a rubber bag was shoved over his head and cables had been wrapped continuously around his neck. _They had tried to choke him…_ Tony frantically cut the cables with a blade the suit had. He yanks the bag off of Peter’s head while listening for a pulse. He feels it beat faintly. Tony takes the teenager’s face in his hands. Peter’s face was pale, his mouth was slack and his eyes were closed. _Dammit dammit dammit!_ Tony curses through clenched teeth and begins CPR. He places his fist on the center of Peter’s small chest for compressions. “C’mon, kid…” Tony alternates between compressions and mouth-to mouth for a little while when suddenly Peter’s body spasms. 

Peter gasps and sucked air into his lungs. A coughing fit ensues after. Tony places his hand on Peter’s back while his body shudders. The color slowly returns to Peter’s complexion. 

Relief floods through Tony, “Hey, you’re okay, Pete. I’ve got you.” 

Peter finally turns to look at Tony, eyes pricked with tears. “H-hey…Mr. Stark…” He wheezes. Peter’s bangs were plastered across his forehead, slick with sweat. Tony spots the indentation the cables left around Peter’s neck and suddenly feels hot. “I’m sorry..” he says through gasps, “you…had to… see that.” Peter attempts to sit up, but immediately fell back on the hard concrete, his head still spinning. Tony caught the back of Peter’s head gently. 

“Look, kid, it’s fine don’t apologize, Jesus.” He holds Peter’s gaze, his voice low, “I’m just glad you’re alive.” The two don’t say anything for a moment while Peter’s ragged breaths fill the warehouse. Tony slowly stands, “We should get you to the compound. I’ll have Bruce and FRIDAY check you out, make sure everything’s okay.” 

Peter croaks in protest, “No, Mr. Stark, I’m okay, you don’t have to do that.” Peter strains to get up, feeling his strength slowly returning. 

“Ah-ah.” Tony is inside his Ironman suit now. “That wasn’t a suggestion. I’m gonna carry you, come on.” He kneels and gingerly picks Peter up from under his legs and around his shoulders, bridal-style. Peter groans—whether from discomfort or embarrassment, Tony isn’t sure. Peter loops his arm around Tony’s neck and leans into his mentor’s chest. 

“But…what about the bad guys?” Peter asks pitifully. 

Tony sighs under the mask, “That’s really not what you need to be concerned with now, bud.” Tony glances down at Peter in his arms as they’re flying. Kid looks exhausted. “I still have to call your Aunt May.”

 

——————————————————————————————————————————

 

Now Tony knows that Peter has enhanced healing. He remembers the previous time Parker’s signal went off: after the kid had been dropped 1,000+ feet from the air into a lake, with his parachute entangling him in the water. Then, Tony had been concerned, but knew Peter would bounce back pretty quickly. This time, however, was very different. The image of Peter’s pale face and unmoving body was seared into Tony’s mind. He was very worried that when Peter passed out without oxygen, his brain had suffered. Which is why Tony hadn’t gone berserk on Peter yet. That was going to come after he was certain Peter was really okay.

They arrive at the compound. Tony lands and carefully releases Peter’s legs to see if he could stand. Peter’s hand steadies on Tony’s metal shoulder, testing his strength. He began to walk forward without experiencing any other issues, and grins over his shoulder at Tony. 

“See, Mr. Stark? I’m fine. There’s no need for anybody to check me out.” Peter sounds hoarse. 

Ironman walks forward, “Yea, I’m not convinced.” He pauses, eyeing the angry red marking around Peter’s neck. It began to form purple and blue bruises. “You’ve met Banner, right? Nice guy.” Peter sighs as Tony leads them inside. 

 

——————————————————————————————————————————

 

Peter enters the double doors of the complex, feeling Mr. Stark’s hand leading him forward. After they were inside, Peter stops, gazing in awe. The compound is beautiful. There are long steel arches that suspend the walls, curving up to the ceiling. The marble floors expand out in front of them, almost glistening as artificial light reflects smoothly off the surface.Even the steel-barred windows are a sight; reaching hundreds of feet to the ceiling, layered with clear, thick glass that display the white face of the moon. 

Tony guides them to an elevator, smirking at Peter’s reaction. “Haven’t you been here before, kid?” He chuckles. 

Peter blinks, “Uh, yea…no, I have.” He tries to regain his composure in front of the billionaire. “I think it’s just been a while.” Once inside the elevator, Tony continues smirking as he instructs the AI to send them to the medical wing. 

Peter recalls his last visit, where Tony offered him to be one of the Avengers. He had believed it was all a test. He also remembered Tony had mentioned Peter had his own room in the compound. He wonders absently if that had been true. _That would be so freaking cool._

The elevator takes them up quickly, it’s doors opening with a flourish and a faint hissing sound. Peter notices first a medical bed, then sees several intimidating medical equipment gathered around the bed. He silently wishes he was at home, dealing with this his way. _My healing is already doing all the work, this isn’t necessary,_ He grumbles to himself in annoyance. He didn’t like it when Mr. Stark treated him like a baby. Tony nudges Peter through the door, towards the bed. 

A figure stepped through a door across the room. He had curly dark brown locks and wire-rimmed glasses atop his nose. _His face seems friendly_ , Peter thinks to himself. Tony speaks first, “Bruce! Thanks for doing this so late. Here, meet Peter.” 

Bruce steps towards Peter, hand outstretched, “Hi, Peter. I’m Bruce Banner. Nice to meet you,” he smiles softly. 

Peter takes his hand and shakes it slowly, his eyes widening, “You’re Dr. Banner..? Oh my god.” Peter couldn’t believe he was shaking hands with the Hulk _and_ an incredible scientist! “I thought you only had PHD’s in radiophysics and biochemistry…but you’re a medical doctor, too?” Peter breathes in awe. 

Bruce can’t help but be amused at the young hero, “Actually I have seven PHD’s. And yes, one of them is an MD,” Bruce explains. 

“Easy there, Pete,” Tony pats Peter’s shoulder. “Don’t get all star-struck on me. I’m sure you have questions for Bruce, but that can wait until after you get looked at.” Tony’s voice sounds light hearted on the surface, but Peter knew there was an underlying tone of worry.

“Okay, Mr. Stark. Let’s get this over with, please.” He resigns himself to the medical bed. Bruce comes to the left side of the bed as Tony stands on the other. 

“Alright, Peter, I’m just going to ask you some questions. Can you tell me what happened to your neck?” Bruce shines a light in Peter’s eyes, and he tries not to squint. He’s sensitive to things like that. 

“Um, okay.. well all I remember is something thick being pulled over my head, and something tight choking my neck,” Peter starts. He sees Tony cross his arms from his peripheral. “I tried to get it off, but it was too tight, and I couldn’t see. After a while, I blacked out, I guess,” Peter shrugs, like it wasn’t a big deal. 

Bruce looks at Mr. Stark, “How long was he unconscious?” 

Tony responds, “a minute we think.” His voice sounds tight. _Geez, Mr. Stark looks so worried!_ Peter feels a weight form in his stomach.

Bruce turns his focus back on Peter. “Peter, can you tell me how your neck feels now?” Peter reaches to touch his neck, rubbing it. “Eh, it’s a little sore I guess.” He is acutely aware that his voice sounds raspy. 

“That’s fine, Peter, perfectly normal,” Bruce murmurs as he places a stethoscope against Peter’s back. “Breathe deep for me, one…two…three…good.” 

Bruce leans back in his chair. “I think the muscles inside your throat and your vocal cords are a little damaged, but I don’t think it’s anything very serious. It appears the swelling has gone down immensely, and this rash is already starting to heal…” Bruce peers closely at the wound in curiosity. “Which is interesting…do you have some kind of healing ability?” he asks softly. Peter finds that Bruce has a calming presence about him. That’s not something you’d expect from a guy who is supposedly always angry. 

Tony answers for Peter, “Yea, the kid has enhanced regenerative abilities. I’m mainly concerned about his brain suffering damage from the lack of oxygen,” Tony almost sounds impatient as he rakes a hand through his hair. 

Bruce glances up at Tony, noticing the concern in his voice. “I don’t think a minute would have been long enough to cause any brain damage, but I can put him through an MRI if it makes you feel better, Tony,” Bruce states matter-of-factly. 

Tony looks taken aback at that comment. “I-I just want to be sure is all,” he stammers. 

Peter stares at his mentor with unblinking eyes. He has _never_ seen Mr. Stark lose his composure like that before. Especially since this reaction seems entirely based on the status of Peter’s wellbeing. 

“Quit looking at me like that, kid. You almost died.” Tony tries to ignore Peter’s gaze and shoves his hands into his pants pockets. Peter looks away quickly, not certain what he should be feeling right now. A warmth steadily blooms in his chest. _Mr. Stark isn’t just worried_ , he realizes. _He really cares…_

Bruce stands up, breaking the silence that pervaded the room. “Alright, I’ll go prep the MRI really quick.” He glances at the both of them with an inquisitive expression in his eyes, “be right back.” He leaves through an opposing doorway.

Peter decides this is his chance to thank Mr. Stark for saving him. He turns towards Tony, “Mr. Stark, th-thank you so much for what happened back there. I don’t know how I let that happen. My spidey-sense didn’t go off in time, I think. I won’t let it happen again, sir, I swear.” He finds himself rambling a little. If he was honest with himself, he was a little scared Mr. Stark would take his suit away from him again. 

Tony grabs a chair and pulls it next to Peter, his expression hard. “Calm down, Pete. I’m not gonna take away your suit,” he says, as if reading Peter’s mind. Tony brings a hand up to pinch the bridge of his nose, sighing heavily. 

“I just really need you to be more careful. Why were you dealing with guys like that anyways? You know you’re only supposed to be handling small crime stuff. Helping old ladies, saving cats out of trees, stuff like that.” Peter is reminded of the last time they had a conversation like this, when Vulture was still around. 

Peter responds trying to maintain the level in his voice, “I think I’ve proven that I’m more capable than that, Mr. Stark,” he says evenly. 

Tony’s eyes flash, “Oh, really? Like just now how you handled that so well almost getting killed?” Tony had stood up suddenly, gesturing with his hands in exasperation. Peter sets his mouth in a line, looking down at his feet. 

Tony closes his eyes again, feeling very tired. “Peter…” he exhales. Peter thinks this is the first time Mr. Stark used his first name in full. Tony looks down at him from where he’s standing, “I know you are very capable. More than any kid I know. But…” he trails off, almost as if he was searching for the right words. Peter waits patiently. 

Tony sits on the end of the bed across from Peter this time. “You have to be able to do the job without relying on Karen, or your spider-intuition—whatever you call it. I know it’s hard, but you have to know what bad stuff could happen before it does.” Tony sees Peter’s head lower in shame. Tony feels guilt strike him, but he brushes it away. The kid has to know the realities of the job.

Peter can’t believe he is about to say this, but he thinks he agrees with Mr. Stark. “Mr. Stark, sir, I-I think you’re right.” A lump has formed at the base of Peter’s throat, now, making it difficult to talk. He swallows heavily trying not to appear like he was upset, “But, I don’t know how to get better at this part,” he admits quietly. “I don’t know where to start.” 

Tony grew still hearing that sentence. Kid has a point. Wasn’t he supposed to be his mentor, his guide through all this? He nods, thinking to himself silently as Peter watches him. “Tell you what kid,” Tony pats Peter’s knee. “Why don’t we arrange for you to come here a couple times a week, get some training in? I’ll work it out with your Aunt May.” 

Peter’s eyes light up and he feels a smile grow big on his cheeks, “Really?” his voice cracks with excitement. Peter feels like he was about to lunge across the bed and tackle Mr. Stark in a hug. It probably wasn’t a good idea though, not knowing how Ironman would react. So he just sits there like a goofball with a crazy grin glued over his face. 

“Yea, why not?” Tony chuckles at Peter’s reaction. The kid was so easy to please. “Okay then, it’s settled. I’ll make arrangements tomorrow,” Tony states in a finalizing tone. He uses the lightened mood between them to study Peter’s face. He is so young. Those large, brown eyes with flecks of gold, his freckles sprinkled across is nose. His messy curls that always manage to come loose across his forehead. Tony noticed that Peter often brushed them to the side, away from his face. _He is so, damn young._ Tony sighs to himself. He notices the wound from the cable on Peter’s neck had practically vanished during their conversation. Peter’s voice hadn’t sounded so scratchy anymore, as well. 

“Dang, Pete,” Tony gestures toward the healing bruise. “Wait until Banner sees that. He’ll ask for a sample of your DNA.” 

Peter shrugs again. “I told you I was gonna be fine.” 

Tony rolls his eyes, “Yea whatever, Spiderman. Can you leave the stubbornness and misplaced concern towards your own safety to me, please? It’s what I do best.” 

Peter cracks a grin. _That’s the Mr. Stark I’m used to_. 


	2. Nightmare

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Peter has a nightmare about Vulture, and Tony doesn't know what to do. May calls Tony about Peter.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I tried write Aunt May in a realistic way. I feel like she would be concerned about Peter like a mom would. Anyways, enjoy!

 

 

After a few short minutes, Bruce returns. “Peter, are you ready to get your first MRI scan?” He asks, a small smile appearing on his lips. Peter follows Bruce into another room with Tony trailing behind. Bruce gets Peter set up inside the machine. Tony and Bruce view Peter through a glass window while Peter gets scanned. 

Bruce turns to Tony, “Yea, so…what the heck was that all about? You and the kid?” He tries to make his voice sound less amused than it actually is. 

Tony blanches, “What are you talking about, Banner. We’re just…” Tony cuts himself off. He realizes he doesn’t know the rest of that sentence. “Peter’s my intern, kinda,” he finishes with a rush. 

“Kinda?” Bruce doesn’t look away from the images of Peter’s brain as they develop. 

Tony attempts to end the conversation, “Yea, I made him the suit. So, he’s my intern.” Bruce isn’t sure why this conversation seems difficult for Tony, but he decides to drop it. 

“Okay. He’s your intern.”

 

After they finish with the scan, Peter returns to the main lobby of the medical wing where Tony and Bruce are making a pot of coffee. “Everything good with my brain?”

Tony glances at his watch. _2:15am. Shit, isn’t it a school night or something?_

Bruce faces Peter, “Peter, your scan showed no signs of damage. You’re perfectly healthy, nothing to worry about.” 

“Yea, yea, yea, you’re the picture of health.” Tony sips his coffee. “I think you should probably crash here for the night, considering how late it is. You can sleep in your room, and I’ll have Happy drop you off at school tomorrow.” Tony knew it would probably make more sense if Peter went back home, but he was a little worried the kid would wind up in another mess, on top of his house being an hour away. 

Peter’s mouth drops open. “Mr. Stark, that’s not necessary! I don’t have my things, w-what about Aunt May!?” he stammers. _Did he say I have a room??_

Tony comes over and brings an arm around Peter’s shoulders, “it’s okay, kid. I already texted your aunt. You can pick up your things on the way.”

Peter looks up at Tony, feeling a little relieved but also kind of guilty for being such a burden tonight. “Mr. Stark, I don’t know what to say. Thank you.” His voice sounds small again, like it had when they were talking about Peter’s recklessness. 

“Don’t worry about it, Pete.” A smile tugs at the corner of Tony’s lips, jostling Peter’s shoulders with his arm. Something about keeping this kid safe makes him feel warm and proud. 

Bruce looks on from across the room, his eyes wide. Tony catches the expression, and drops his arm from Peter’s shoulders hastily. “Alright, uh, FRIDAY, show Peter to his room, would you?” Tony scratches the back of his ear- a nervous tick. 

“Yes, sir. Peter, please exit through the room and take a left,” the AI complies. 

Once Peter had left the room, Bruce makes eye contact with Tony. “Okay, now what was _that?”_

“SHH!” Tony hisses. He drops his voice to a whisper, “quiet! The kid has super hearing.” 

Bruce stares. “ _What?”_

Tony doesn’t say anything for a minute, waiting to speak. “Okay, I think he’s far enough away now,” he breathes. 

Bruce sets his coffee down and crosses his arms. “Tony, you have to humor me, here. Who is this kid?” His expression is incredulous, but Bruce is actively trying to hold in a grin. It’s entertaining to see Tony behave so paternally- and be good at it. 

Tony shifts uncomfortably. “I told you he was my intern, what more do you want?” 

“C’mon, Tony. We’re friends, right? He just seems important to you, and I’d like to know why.” Bruce shrugs, “it’s not like I didn’t know Tony Stark has a heart, after all.”

Tony rolls his eyes and stares at the ceiling for a beat. “Alright,” he sighs, surrendering to the interrogation. Tony fills Bruce in on how he met Peter during the events of Civil War and how he maintained close contact with Peter afterwards. He described Peter as a someone with a lot of potential, and mentioned how impressed he was when Peter turned down a spot with the Avengers. 

“I see myself as responsible for his safety,” Tony admits. “…and he’s a pretty cool kid.” Tony smiles to himself, feeling that foreign sense of pride again. 

Bruce nods slowly, taking the information he just learned in. “Well, I think it’s great. What you’re doing for him.” He rubs his chin absently, “it seems like he likes you, too. He clearly looks up to you, I mean.”

Tony lifts his head from leaning against his hand on the counter. That had sat down at a table during their conversation. “Really, you think so?” Tony often gets worried that Peter finds him overbearing. “I just want him to know I’ve got his back, that I’m there for him. My Dad was never like that.” Tony freezes as he says the last portion of that sentence. _That was a little more sharing than I’m comfortable with_ , he glances at Bruce from the corner of his eye as he sips more coffee. Thankfully, Bruce doesn’t acknowledge the Dad comment, and Tony relaxes. 

“So I guess this means we’ll be seeing more of this Spider kid, huh?” Bruce goes to stand. “You should probably fill in Rhodes eventually.” 

Tony huffs, “Yea, I’ll get right on that.” _That won’t be embarrassing at all._

Bruce smiles again. “Okay, man. I’m gonna turn in for the night. See you later.” He pats Tony’s back and leaves Tony alone with his thoughts. 

Tony checks his watch again. _4am. Looks like I’m not gonna get much sleep tonight._ He stands and heads for his lab. He figures he could get some more work done while he’s up. He hums to himself as he picks up his goggles. Tony recollects the night’s events as he tinkers.

_“It seems that he likes you, too. He clearly looks up to you, I mean.”_

Tony smiles. “FRIDAY, let me know if the kid needs anything. Just alert me.”

“OK, Boss.”

 

 

——————————————————————————————————————————

 

Peter shuffles through the compound, following FRIDAY’s instructions to his room. _I can’t believe I actually have a room at the freakin’ Avenger’s compound,_ he suppresses another grin. He didn’t want FRIDAY to make some smarmy comment about his excitement. Karen was definitely known to do that, and Peter wasn’t sure if the personalities of both AI’s were designed to be similar. He arrives at a door. 

“You’ve reached your room, Peter,” FRIDAY states.

“Uh, thanks, Fri.” Peter opens the door tentatively. He enters through the frame and can’t help but release an audible gasp of awe. “Ohhhhh my Goddddd.” The room was probably bigger than most five star hotels. Peter recalls the fancy hotel he stayed in when Happy brought him to Germany to fight Captain America. The walls are a rich blue, and there are two enormous bay windows across the room. His eyes land on a king-size bed complete with light grey comforter set that looks incredibly comfortable. An expensive television is mounted on a wall facing a seating area complete with a leather couch and two chairs placed around a glass coffee table. Peter walks deeper into his room and finds another door next to the TV. He opens it and sees that it leads to a very nicely designed bathroom, complete with a walk-in closet and high-tier appliances. “Holy shit..!” he breathes. 

How was he supposed to go to sleep when he had the coolest looking room to stay in? He turns and leaps onto the bed, laughing. He wishes he could text Ned pictures of the room, but it wouldn’t be smart. He trusts his best friend with everything, but he knows he needs to be careful when it comes to Ironman/Avenger’s stuff. 

“Wait a minute,” Peter thinks aloud. “I don’t have anything to sleep in.” He frowns, looking down at his Spider-man suit. 

“Mr. Stark has clothing available for you in your dresser.” The AI chimes in. Peter jumps, not expecting a response to his statement. 

“Oh, okay. Thank you,” he replies awkwardly. He has got to get used to a building being able to watch and listen to everything he says and does. Peter ambles over to a sleek dresser. He opens the top drawer and sees cotton T-shirts and an array of pants. He picks a white shirt and plaid flannel pajama pants. He changes quickly, folding his suit onto one of the chairs. He climbs into his new bed. It _was_ comfortable! As Peter settles in the covers, the lights dim and shut off, leaving him in darkness. As Peter’s vision adjusts, he notices the moonlight peeking though the window’s blinds, allowing a little light into the room. Peter relaxes as he sinks deeper into the mattress. _What an insane night._ He yawns, suddenly feeling exhausted. The adrenaline and energy from the day’s events finally wear off, leaving Peter feeling weighted and sore. He closes his eyes and he’s asleep before he realizes it. 

 

——————————————————————————————————————————

 

Peter feels something tighten around his neck. He reaches up and tries frantically to pull, but the cables only burn the skin in response. _No! No! Not again! Please!_ Peter chokes and gasps. He is completely blind, and has no idea where he is. He feels tears well up in his eyes and his cheeks feel hot. _I can’t breathe, oh God!_

He hears a gravelly voice he recognizes pierce the air, “How pathetic. Spider-man goes down so easy.” 

Suddenly, something hard clamps onto Peter’s shoulders and he knows he’s being propelled high into the air. The metallic feet that are welded to Peter’s arms are eerily familiar. 

_Nooooo!_ Peter thrashes maniacally, his heartbeat impossibly loud in his ears. He tries to call out, “Mr. Stark…” he wheezes.

“You have to know what bad things could happen before they happen, kid.” Peter hears Tony’s voice echo. He dizzily reaches his hands out in the air towards the voice, but can’t place where it’s coming from. _I know, I’m sorry! I’m so sorry!_ Peter feels a sob choke out at the base of his throat. He feels himself be released from the Vulture’s grasp. He screams as he falls. 

Light suddenly floods Peter’s senses. _That doesn’t make any sense…_ He stops thrashing and his eyes fly open, panting. He realizes that he is in a room, a room he hadn’t been to before. He is laying in a bed, his hands clutching the bedsheets. It is dawn outside. _I’m at the Avenger’s compound. I’m not being attacked, again. I’m okay._ The anxiety and fear melt away as Peter tries to regulate his breathing. He brings his hands to his face in exhaustion. _It was just a dream, just a dream,_ he chants to himself wearily. He pulls away from his face, his hands wet from the tears and sweat. _Geez,_ he thinks to himself. _I’ve never had a nightmare like that before. It felt so real._

Peter shakily tries to get up off the side of the bed. His arms and legs feel like jelly. He takes a minute to stabilize himself, and then heads to the bathroom for a shower. _What the hell was that?_ Peter’s forehead creases with concern as he washes his hair. His heart is still hammering loudly in his chest. _I gotta calm down. Can’t let Mr. Stark see me like this, he’ll freak._ Peter steps out of the shower and towels off. _If I’m lucky, I won’t even see him. He’s a busy guy, he’s probably not even here._

 

——————————————————————————————————————————

 

“Boss.” 

“Yea, Fri?” Tony was busy welding something with a blow torch. The sun is rising outside, illuminating the lab with a soft pink light. 

“It appears that Peter is having a nightmare, and possibly a panic attack simultaneously,” the AI states. 

Tony freezes. What is he supposed to do with this information? Go to him? Try and comfort the kid? Tony feels helpless for some reason, restricted by some need to maintain his appearance as the sarcastic, intelligent, and egotistical billionaire.

“Pull up live visual into his room.” Maybe if he sees just how bad it is, he’ll know what to do. 

FRIDAY displays Peter’s room through a digital monitor. Peter is shown thrashing wildly in his bed, his eyes squeezed shut. He was clutching his sheets in terror. 

“Audio, please.”

Peter’s voice cuts through the air. He is shouting incoherently one moment, then in the next he is whimpering. Tony can’t understand what he is saying and his brow furrows. A sob escapes Peter’s lips and Tony holds his breath. _Poor kid…_ Suddenly, Peter lets out a piercing scream. Tony stands abruptly, knocking his chair out behind him. That is a sound that Tony _never, ever_ wants to hear again. He is about to leave to wake Peter up when he sees Peter gasp and open his eyes. His face is glistening with tears. _Christ, kid._ Tony brings his hand over his mouth. In this moment, he is reminded of the many nights Pepper had cradled Tony in her arms after he had a nightmare so intense he couldn’t breathe. 

“Turn off visual.” 

Tony ran his hands through his hair, exhaling. _Does Peter have PTSD now?_ Tony didn’t think he would be jumping to conclusions if this were true. Peter has been through multiple traumatic events, including the death of his parents and his uncle. Now that he’s Spider-man, there’s probably a lot more this kid has experienced that he’s too young to process healthily. Tony wonders if this is Peter’s first nightmare, or one of a series. 

Tony isn’t certain what his next move should be. He could just stay in his lab and wait for Peter to leave for school. That would definitely be the easy way out; to just pretend he hadn’t seen anything. But Tony can’t ignore this strange nagging feeling pooling at the pit of his stomach. It was a weird mix of worry, guilt, and…does he detect a sense of protectiveness? _This kid is going to be the death of me._

Tony had his answer. It would be wrong to ignore what Peter is going through now that he knows. He should help him, if he can. 

“Fri, let Peter know I’m in the kitchen and to meet me there when he’s ready.” 

“Will do.”

 

——————————————————————————————————————————

 

Peter finishes getting dressed when FRIDAY alerts him that Mr. Stark expects to see him in the kitchen. Anxiety shoots through Peter’s heart. _He doesn’t know, he can’t know. Maybe he just wants to talk about the training we’re gonna be doing later? Yea that’s probably it,_ Peter rationalizes to himself as he follows FRIDAY’s instructions through the compound again, heading to the kitchen. 

He reaches an archway that has no doors, and enters through them. He doesn’t see Tony anywhere, so he takes a seat at the large industrial-looking kitchen table. 

Tony breezes in a moment later, holding another cup of coffee and a laptop. Peter takes in Tony’s appearance. He is still wearing the same clothes from yesterday, and the bags under Mr. Stark’s eyes tell Peter that his mentor hadn’t slept at all last night. Peter’s heart sinks. _If he was awake when I had that nightmare…_ He gulps _. He knows._

“Morning, kid.” Tony gives him a half smile as he sets his laptop down on the kitchen island. Peter nods sheepishly in response. “You hungry? Want some chow before you go to school?”

Peter stares. This is weird. Is Ironman offering to make him breakfast?

Tony glances over to Peter, and then opens the fridge. He pulls out some eggs and bacon. “You’re not vegetarian, are you?” He calls out from inside the fridge. 

“Uh, no, no I’m not a vegetarian,” Peter mutters. “Um, Mr. Stark? What are you doing?” 

Tony pulls his head back into Peter’s view. “Breakfast, obviously. I thought you were supposed to be smart, being in this school for geniuses and whatnot.” 

Peter finds himself blushing. Mr. Stark is always complimenting Peter’s intelligence. He thinks sometimes he does it on purpose to make Peter feel good about himself. “Yea, I know you’re making breakfast, _obviously_ , I was just wondering what for? No offense, but I didn’t think you could cook,” Peter quips. 

Tony began to scramble some eggs after pre-heating the oven for the bacon. “Very funny. I figured since you have this crazy metabolism, you probably have to eat a ton. Probably more than an average teen.” 

Peter didn’t know how to respond to that other than to agree. “Yea, I guess so…”

They both wait in silence for Tony’s cooking to finish. After he was done, Tony hands Peter a plate and they both sit down at the table across from each other. 

Tony breaks the silence, “So about this nightmare you had-”

Peter starts choking on his food. _Geez, he just starts the conversation like that?_ “Wait, wait!” Peter puts his hand up. Tony waits for him to clear his throat. “Mr. Stark,” Peter begins. “I know you probably saw all that- which by the way, intrusion of privacy much? Anyway, it’s fine, I haven’t had a nightmare like that before so it’s probably nothing and I doubt it’ll happen again.” He levels his head to match Tony’s. His expression looks unimpressed but at least he wasn’t interrupting Peter. “So, yea, it’s okay Mr. Stark, I’m fine.”

Tony has to prevent himself from rolling his eyes. The kid always has to say his piece first and it annoys the _hell_ out of him. “Do you wanna at least tell me what the dream was about before you act like you’re made of rock and stone?” _Damn invincibility complex._ Tony crosses his arms.

“Okay, sure.” _If it’s no big deal to me then I should be able to talk about it just fine,_ Peter justifies to himself. “Remember the Vulture guy? Well he had dropped me from really high, well, you know that, and I really hate heights, and then from yesterday I thought I was choking and being dropped at the same time and it was scary.” Peter rushes through his story and catches Mr. Stark’s face. It hardens immediately at the mention of Vulture.

“Okay, Spider-man.” Tony replies cooly, picking back up his fork. “If you say it’s no big deal, then I believe you.” Peter looks back at him in stunned silence. _Wait, what?_

Tony continues, “ _But_ if you have been having these more than once in the past, and keep having them in the future, you should really let me know. I have…” Tony pauses, “…experience in that department, to say the least.” Tony finishes his plate and stands to take Peter’s empty one. 

_That went surprisingly well. No freak out like I was expecting._ Peter blinks, astonished. “Okay, I will, Mr. Stark. Oh, am I still coming back here to train at some point this week?” He doesn’t hide the excitement coating his voice. 

“Yea, kid I’ll text you. You should probably go, Happy is waiting for you downstairs in the limo.” Tony rinses off the plates, saying this completely cool sentence so casually.

“Wait, a limo?” Peter exclaims. “Holy crap!” 

Tony can’t help but chuckle. Peter was so damn endearing sometimes. 

Peter stands and begins to head for the exit. He pauses and looks at Tony. “Hey, Mr. Stark!” He calls.

“Hm?” Tony doesn’t look up from cleaning up the dishes.

Peter waltzes across the room to where Tony stands, and wraps his arms around the billionaire in a hug from behind. 

“Oof!” Tony grunts and then stiffens as Peter’s arms hug his chest. _Is this kid giving me…a fucking hug??_

“Thank you, Mr. Stark. For everything.” Peter murmurs into Tony’s back. He smells like coffee and motor oil. Peter decides if he really does have another nightmare like that one, he’ll tell Tony.

Peter lets go and leaves, a smile faint on his lips. _That wasn’t so bad. I guess its true what they say; Ironman is just a big softie underneath that “I’m too rich and important to be bothered by the likes of you commoners” exterior._ He finds Happy at the bottom of the stairs and waves cheerfully. “Hi, Happy!”

Happy pretends to be annoyed with Peter, per usual. “C’mon kid, we’re going to be late.”

“Always so energetic in the morning, Happy?” Peter’s grin widens. He loves pressing the bodyguard’s buttons.

“Of course, aren’t you? Buckle up.” 

 

——————————————————————————————————————————

 

Tony is stunned. He doesn’t move for several minutes from his position at the kitchen sink. _That kid just seriously gave me, Tony Stark, a freakin’ hug._ He shakes his head in disbelief and snorts, a smile pulling at the corner of his lips. How is it that this nerdy kid from Queens can have such a profound effect on him? 

FRIDAY pipes in all of the sudden, pulling him out of his reverie, “Mrs. May Parker is calling you, Sir.”

“Oh shit,” Tony mutters. He had texted May a long message last night after Tony had Peter looked at through the MRI scan. He had omitted several more concerning details about the night to save himself the headache of feeling more guilty than he already did. He had, however, let her know that Peter was with him, was safe, and he was responsible for him getting to school the next morning. She probably just saw the message since it was so early in the morning, and is calling to check up on the situation. 

“Ok, answer it.” After a beat Tony adjusts his composure, wanting to appear as confident as possible. After all, May had nothing to worry about. “This is Stark.”

May’s voice reverbs through the kitchen. “Hi, Tony, it’s May. I just got off the phone with Peter a second ago and wanted to see how you were doing?” May always sounds so friendly and casual when she speaks to Tony, despite the fact that Tony knows she doesn’t exactly approve of him. 

“Uh, yea I’m good. Pete left to go to school a second ago. Made him some breakfast.” He closes his eyes, annoyed with himself. _I have no idea why I just gave her that detail_.

“Yeah… So, Peter got into a situation last night? You said something had happened in the text message but not what exactly. I’m asking you because Peter never tells me anything about him being a super hero now. Especially if he gets hurt,” May sounds dismayed. 

Tony’s heart skips a beat. There’s that guilt again. “Uh-huh. He’s stubborn like that, isn’t he?”

“Can you tell me what happened? I promise I’m not gonna get mad at you. I mean, thank you for finding him and bringing him somewhere safe.”

Tony nods, feeling uneasy but understanding that she deserves to know. “Sure. So, Peter, er-I mean Spider-man- was in a tussle with some drug lords in NYC. He was apparently caught off guard and someone slipped a bag over his head. He passed out, but I got to him in time.” He takes a long sip of his coffee. It’s cold. 

“Oh my God, _what_?” She breathes in astonishment. “I can’t believe he wouldn’t tell me that. He could’ve died…” 

Tony knows exactly how she feels. “I think, and I’m not saying I agree with this by any means, but I think Pete’s just trying to keep you from worrying. Trying to protect you in that annoying, “I’m a hero and nothing can hurt me” way. A lot of us have that problem,” he tries for a joke. 

May doesn’t laugh. “Okay,” she sighs. “Thank you for telling me, and thanks again for being there for Peter.”

“Don’t mention it, just trying to help him out.”

“Yea, about that. He mentioned that you wanted to start training him at the Avenger’s compound?” The skeptical tone to her voice is very apparent. 

“Right, right. I wanted to ask you what you thought about that. See, Spider-man is pretty inexperienced, and he gets himself into trouble without thinking things through. I figured I could show him the ropes, so to speak,” Tony tries to sound like what he was saying was no big deal, but he knows May wouldn’t like this at all. 

“I get where you’re coming from, Tony, but he’s fifteen years old. He has school work, and I’m not even fond of him going out every night doing this super hero thing…” she trails away sounding conflicted. “I guess he could use someone to teach him about this stuff, though. God knows I can’t.”

Tony didn’t realize he was holding his breath. He exhales in a rush, “Well, it’s because he’s so young that I think this would be good for him. I want to minimize situations like last night as much as possible, too. I also know he won’t just stop. He loves it too much.” _Plus, if I’m there helping him, I can protect him before something bad happens._

May is quiet on the other line, thinking. “Okay. Okay, I think we can make this work. For Peter.” 

Tony feels a weight lift off his shoulders. He waits for her to continue, knowing there is going to be conditions he has to follow. 

“But I need to lay some ground rules for Peter first. One, he can only go over to train on weekends. He’s too busy during the school week and with these nightly patrols he’s exhausted all the time. I’ve already told him he’s supposed to be home by 10pm at the latest, but that falls on deaf ears.”

_May really loves Peter,_ Tony affirms silently. _She’s trying to be supportive and protective._ “I can help you with that,” he pitches in. “His suit is connected to my AI at the compound, so I can keep track of his whereabouts.”

May’s voice lightens, “Really? Oh my gosh, that would be so helpful, Tony, thank you. He drives me crazy when he doesn’t come home for hours and hours without telling me anything!”

Tony chuckles. _Yep, that’s Pete._

“Rule number two: Peter needs to call me every night he’s staying with you at the compound. Even if you are in the middle of some battle or whatever, he needs to call me. And rule number three: if Peter gets hurt, Tony I need you to alert me. Save my number, and text me. I’ll head over wherever he is immediately.” 

_She’s really serious about all this. Can’t say I blame her…_ Tony nods as he absorbs May’s rules, “May, you got it. He’s in good hands, I promise. We won’t break any rules if I can help it.”

“Good,” May sighs again. “I have to go now, and I’m sure you’re busy. I’ll fill Peter in what we discussed.” She pauses, “Just…keep him safe for me, okay? He worries me to death.”

Tony’s stomach lurches. “Of course. I’ll protect him with my life.” The sentence came out so quickly Tony hadn’t been able to stop himself. Now that he’s said it, he knows it’s true. 

“Thanks, Tony. I’ll talk to you later.” The line disconnects. 

 

Tony exhales again heavily. Talking to May about Peter is a little exhausting. Whenever they speak, Tony feels like he has to prove to May that he isn’t the playboy narcissist that the media portrays him as. Well—he _is_ , but not when it comes to Peter’s safety. He knows it’s probably going to take a while for May to warm up to him. That’s okay, Tony doesn’t mind. She’ll trust him soon enough. All he has to do is keep his end of the bargain: keep Peter safe. 

_Easy enough._ Tony shakes his head to himself. He pulls out his phone to send the kid a quick text:

TONY: Hey, kid. All things are green with Aunt May. See you later this week. 

SPIDER-KID: Cool! Can’t wait!!  🤩

TONY:  👍

Tony smirks. He can practically see Peter’s eager smile through the text message. _This is going to be a good thing,_ he affirms to himself. 

 

_For Peter._


	3. Training: Part One

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tony trains Peter on his combat skills. Peter is also just the cutest.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It was fun writing this one. I love mentor Tony actually mentoring. Also, Ned it great.

Peter woke up for school flying out of his bed and changing into his clothes in a rush. It had been an incredibly long week, but finally—it was Friday! He feels a big smile pull across his cheeks. _I finally get to train with Mr. Stark at the Avenger’s facility today!_ He can’t believe his luck. Six months ago there was no way he would have imagined Aunt May being cool with him as Spiderman, let alone allow him to train with Ironman! This is going to be an amazing day, and nothing could ruin it for Peter. Nothing.

Peter grabs his backpack and jogs out of his room to the kitchen. May is nursing a cup of coffee. “Hi, honey,” she squints up at him, her eyes still tired from just waking up herself. 

“Morning, May,” Peter rustles through the cabinets for pop tarts. A grin is still plastered on his face. 

“You look…excited this morning.” May raises her brows.

Peter rolls his eyes, “Don’t tell me you forgot! I’m seeing Mr. Stark today after school,remember?” He gestures his hands in the air, pop tart almost flying.

“Oh, you’re right, Peter. I’m sorry. No I didn’t forget, I’m just tired.” She offers a small smile. “Do you remember all the rules I told you about?” 

Peter groans, “Yes, May. I won’t forget to call you every night.” He pours himself a glass of orange juice. 

“Good.” She stands and gives him a peck on the cheek. “Have fun today. Be safe.” She gently pinches his cheek where she had kissed him. “I love you, honey.” 

“Geez, May.” Peter brushes her away, blushing. Gathering his things he returns the gesture, giving her a quick peck. “Love you. Bye!” He heads out the door. 

May sighs after her nephew closes the door, a wave dying on her arm. _Be careful, Peter._

 

_——————————————————————————————————————————_

 

Blissfully, school flies by for Peter. He pulls out his phone as the bell rings.

PETER: Hey, Mr. Stark! Am I meeting you at the compound after school? I can swing there no prob.  🕷

MR. STARK: No need. Happy will get you. Just come outside, he’s there waiting. 

 

Peter stifles a gasp. _He doesn’t have another limo out there, does he?_ Peter walks over to a window in the classroom that overlooks the entrance to the school. Sure enough, a limousine is parked waiting for him. Peter covers his face with his hands, apprehensively. It was cool the first time, but if this is gonna be a weekly event, Peter’s attempt at remaining invisible is going to be much more difficult. 

Peter feels something move next to him and he almost jumps. “What’re you lookin- whoa…..” Ned’s mouth fell open at the limo. “What’s that doing here, man? You were staring at it pretty intently. Wait.” Ned’s eyes light up before Peter can respond. “It’s Mr. Stark again, isn’t it? Oh my God!” He squeals.

“Shut up, Ned!” Peter motions for them to move away from the window. He speaks with a hushed voice, “I’m gonna go train with Ironman, but—” Ned bursts into another gleeful smile. “BUT, I need you to be cool. I’m just interning with Mr. Stark for the weekend. No big deal.” He rests his hand on his friend’s shoulder, shielding him from other classmates who may notice Ned’s not-too-subtle reaction. 

Ned nods hurriedly. “I got you, man. I can play it cool, don’t worry.” Ned seems to calm down enough for Peter, so they walk through the halls together just like any other day. As they exit the school’s double doors to the main road, Peter turns to Ned. 

“Okay, man. I’ll see you later this weekend okay?” He leans in to his friend, “I’m so stoked!” 

Ned breaks into another characteristically bright grin. “Dude, you have to fill me in on everything!!”

“I will, man.” Peter and Ned share their special handshake. “Bye!” Peter turns and heads for the limo. He eyes his surroundings, but keeps his head down as a few of his classmates stop talking and watch him open the limo’s door and climb in. Peter exhales as he settles into the seat, placing his hands on his knees, pensively. 

Happy glances at him from the rearview mirror. “You okay there, buddy?”

Peter nods. “Yeah, just worried about the other kids noticing me too much,” he mutters. The car lurches them forward and Peter peers out the window. Everyone seems to be talking amongst themselves, apparently moving on from witnessing him get into a limo. He relaxes his shoulders. 

“Don’t let ‘em get to you. They’ll have forgotten by tomorrow morning. Kids are like that—always moving onto something more interesting.” Happy tries a smile at Peter. The bodyguard and Peter have developed a certain rapport. Peter annoys Happy, Happy ignores Peter. Peter teases Happy, Happy ignores Peter. But when Happy could tell something was bothering the kid, he always tried to help. 

“Thanks, Hap.” 

The rest of the drive is relatively quiet, other than Peter occasionally rambling about school and his friends. Happy listens, letting him talk. Eventually, Peter runs out of things to say, and Happy puts on some radio. 

They arrive at the compound and Peter restrains from leaping out of the car. Instead he calmly gathers his backpack and begins to walk up the stairs. The weather outside is beautiful. Sunny, 70 degrees, a mild breeze catches Peter’s bangs. 

He rummages through his backpack for the temporary I.D. card Tony made him so he could access certain parts of the facility. Peter grins shyly as he shows his card to the secretary who nods in approval. He finds the nearest elevator and scans his card upon entry. 

“Good afternoon, Mr. Parker.” A polite voice echoes through the elevator speakers. 

Peter blinks, “Hi, FRIDAY. Mr. Stark know I’m here?” 

“Yes, of course. I’m routing you to the training grounds per his request.” She replies automatically.

Peter nods and he is sent…downwards. _Interesting._ Peter thinks to himself. 

FRIDAY acts as an attendant yet again, leading Peter through a corridor that ends at a set of large, steel doors. He uses his ID card again at the scanner. There is a _ping_ and he hears steam escape as the doors move open. _The security here is seriously no joke._

Peter’s eyes widen as he enters through an impossibly large arena. Peter’s mind immediately goes to all of the places he could web onto or swing from. Obviously distracted, Peter doesn’t notice his mentor eyeing him from across the room as he approaches. 

“Hey, Pete!” Tony calls, slightly amused due to Peter’s mouth being agape. 

Peter whirls around to face Tony. “Mr. Stark!” He begins to jog forward. “Didn’t see you there. What’s up? What’re we doing today?” Peter’s grin is wide. Tony can’t help but be endeared a little bit.

“Okay, kid. First I need to assess your skills overall. I’m going to put you through some tests, and whatever the results are we can determine our next step from there. Good?” Tony peers at the kid from his tinted sunglasses, eyebrow pricked. 

Peter nods rapidly. “Yes. Good. I’m ready.” Then he holds his hand up. “Wait! Let me get my suit on!”

After a few minutes Peter returns from the locker room with his Spiderman suit equipped. Tony has Peter perform against several run of the mill obstacles. He times his speed, tests his agility, measures his strength, and so on. Tony couldn’t believe how strong this kid was. Peter was holding over 8 tons of weight underneath a mechanism pushing down on Peter as he used his arms to push up. Tony had to keep adding weight despite believing Peter was just about done. 

“Kid, can you seriously keep going?” Tony asks incredulously from the control panel. 

Peter is gritting his teeth while he speaks, “S’ok, Mr. Stark. I can…handle it.”

Miraculously after ten tons of weight, Peter finally can’t lift any more. Lastly, Tony wants to see how Peter can demonstrate hand-to-hand combat. 

“Alright, Parker. I wanna see how you can fight combat. One on one. Mano y mano.” Tony pulls out an iPad and begins fiddling away as he speaks. 

Peter removes his mask and his trademark puppy-dog eyes are wide. “Mr. Stark, no way. You just saw how strong I am. I don’t…want to break your arm or something.” 

“Well, I would hope not. You’re not gonna fight _me_ , kid. I’ll be able to see what you can do better from a distance.” He taps something on the face of the iPad and suddenly an opening appears on the ground and another, smaller ironman suit rises through. The robot appears to look identical to Spiderman’s suit, having a flat, oval-shaped face with large plating for the eyes. The height and build are similar to Peter’s as well. The most prominent distinction is its chromatic coloring. Peter walks up to the figure, peering at its metallic visage. He sees only his reflection staring back at him.

“This little machine is able to learn your moves as you demonstrate them.” Tony begins. “I programmed it to think like you in a fight, although it’s abilities in combat should be a little more advanced. For example, it’s probably better at blocking and countering than you are. From what I’ve seen.” Tony earns a snarky look from Peter. He continues, smirking. “So, this should be an interesting fight. Good luck, Mr. Parker.” Tony moves to a far end corner away from the duelists. He pauses and crosses his arms, watching from the distance.

Peter huffs as he positions himself in preparation for the fight. He almost always waits for his opponent to attack first, but since the ‘bot isn’t doing anything, he leaps into action. Just as Peter is about to land a kick, the machine grabs Peter’s leg, pinning it to it’s chest. Peter tries to yank his leg away, losing balance. “Hey! Let go!” Suddenly he is lifted in the air and slammed down. Hard. Concrete cracks underneath Peter’s back, but he gets up, unfazed. 

“Okay. I see how it is.” With a new sense of determination, Peter flips backwards out of his attacker’s grasp. 

Tony observes from his spot in the corner, making sure everything is being recorded by FRIDAY. “His agility is insane. He’s like a damn cat.” Tony mutters to himself. Peter is handing himself well against his makeshift CombatBot. 

Peter slings across the arena, using his momentum to dive into his opponent straight on with his heel in a kick to the head. The machine crashes into the pavement, and Peter hops away, pumping his fists in the air in celebration. “Whoo!! Take that!” He points, smiling. 

To Peter’s surprise, the robot pulls itself out of the rubble, dusting off one it’s shoulders in classic Tony Stark fashion. “Oh, shit.” Peter turns and webs an archway in the ceiling. He begins to propel himself forward when he feels a hand clasp around his ankle. _Damn, this thing is fast!_

Peter is thrown backwards forcibly, his back colliding with the opposing wall. 

Tony looks up from his iPad working on configurations for Peter’s suit when he hears the crash. Peter had made a pretty big impact to the wall, leaving a sizable dent. He sees the kid stumble forward, holding his head. 

“Okay, time for this session to end.” Tony swipes through the robot’s power source on his device and the machine powers down mid-step. Peter stops and then glares at Tony. 

“Hey, I had that!”

“Don’t mess with me, that thing had you owned.” Tony steps forward, removing his glasses, eyeing Peter for injuries. “What do you think went wrong?”

Peter sighs. “I don’t know…” He pauses in contemplation, rubbing the back of his neck. “I think it was a little too fast for me. And I wasn’t very good at handling combat up close. I’m more comfortable fighting from a distance.” 

Tony nods, pleased with this answer. “Bingo. You need to work on being able to disable an enemy from close up and personal just as well as from far away. Also, you need to work on your countering skills. If something throws you from across the room, I know your cat-like reflexes can spin your body around and catch a landing before you fall.” 

Peter brings a hand to his chin. “Huh. Never thought about it like that.” 

“Yup.” Tony pats Peter’s shoulder encouragingly. “It’s what I’m here for, kid.” 

 

——————————————————————————————————————————

 

The pair decide to take a break in the living quarters. Peter has changed back into his regular jeans and T-shirt with a graphic of the periodic table. Tony needs to keep working on some things for Stark Industries, but he doesn’t want to just leave the kid by himself. He had freed up his weekend for Parker, yet there’s always something he needs to sign off on or authorize or meet about. 

Tony mixes himself a drink at the kitchen counter. Peter sits on a barstool at the kitchen island, bouncing his knee impatiently. 

“So…” Tony takes a sip of his bourbon. “What do you do for fun? I mean, when you’re not spider-ing.”

Peter cracks a grin. “Well, I’m into Sci-fi. I like Star Wars. I like movies in general, really” He shrugs. 

“You want to watch a movie or something?” Tony offers. It’d be a great way to pass the time, and he’d have a chance to slip away for some work. 

Peter’s eyes light up. “Yea! What do you like? It doesn’t have to be something for me, I’m good with whatever.” 

“Oh. Well, I have to take care of some things. CEO stuff. Why don’t you just tell FRIDAY what you want to watch and she’ll throw it on the TV for ya.” Tony tips back his cup, swallowing the remainder in one gulp. The dark liquid burns his throat and he grimaces. 

Peter’s face falters. “Oh, sure. Okay, yea I know you’re super busy.” Peter fixates his eyes on the counter. 

_Geez, this kid is bad at covering up his emotions._ Tony feels a slight prick of guilt. He tries to brush it off, rationalizing to himself that Peter will understand. “Okay. I’ll catch you in a little bit. Have a good time.” He turns on his heel and exits the room. Tony makes it down the hall to one of the conference rooms when regret crushes him with an impending force. What is he doing? This is exactly what his Dad did to him for his entire life. The kid gave him a goddamn hug, for Christ’s sake! Tony shakes his head, trying to dismiss the numerous, emotionally raw memories of his father treating Tony like he was a nuisance instead of a son. He finds a chair in the room and sits down wearily. Tony remembers that Peter didn’t have a father since he was a baby. 

Before Tony had recruited Spider-man for his fight against Captain America, he had given Peter a thorough background check. He knows most of who Peter is, where he’s from, his awards for school, his clearly genius-level intelligence, and some basic information on his background. He knows his parents died in an accident when he was young, and he knows his aunt and uncle had been raising him instead. His uncle had died gruesomely from gunshot, right in front of Peter, if he recalls correctly. 

“Oh, for God’s sake.” Tony groans. “FRIDAY,” he announces to the room, his hand rubbing his forehead. 

“Yes, boss.”

“Pull up anything on Ben Parker, Peter’s uncle. He was the last person in his family to have died, I believe.” 

FRIDAY complies. Instead of Tony attending the meeting he had scheduled, he pours over Peter’s tragic family history for the next hour. 

 

——————————————————————————————————————————

 

Peter is lounging on the sofa, watching _Back to the Future_ when Tony strolls in with a couple boxes of pizza and a twelve-pack of coke. Peter scrambles to sit up, opening his mouth to speak.

“Wha—”

“Hungry? You teens still like pizza, right?” Tony cuts Peter off with a sly grin. “I know most of you run on self-loathing and memes nowadays.”

Peter stares. 

Tony rolls his eyes, “I’m kidding.”

Peter hesitantly stands. “Thanks, Mr. Stark. But what about your CEO stuff? Are you done with that already?” His eyebrow quirks in suspicion.

“Yup. I wrapped it up early so we could hang out.” Tony sets the food down and grabs some plates from the cupboard. “Though I gotta be honest with you, kid. I don’t want to watch that ridiculous movie. The science in it is nonsense. Let’s watch something else.”

The two settle into the couch next to each other with their pizzas and cokes. Tony smiles at Peter, who’s entire mood was completely uplifted. Peter’s characteristically wide grin is back on his cheeks, and his posture was upright instead of sagging a moment before. The kid talks throughout practically the entire movie, in-between bites of pizza. Every time something happens in the film that makes Peter laugh, his voice fills the air. It is a great sound. Tony honestly can’t remember the last time someone laughed in this compound. Ever since Civil War, everyone’s been so tense. Being with Peter gave Tony a sense of relief in some way. 

The movie is coming to an end when Tony gets an alert on his watch. “Uh, oh.” He’s about to stand when Rhodes breezes into the room, stopping when he sees Peter and Tony on the couch together. 

“Um.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next chapter will be finished soon!

**Author's Note:**

> Let me know what you think!  
> Next chapter is written, just needs edits. I will try to post as often as I finish.


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